1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an improved data processing system and in particular to a data processing system and method for generating a data dump. Still more particularly, the present invention provides a mechanism for gathering first failure data collection information in a data processing system that has encountered a failure condition.
2. Description of Related Art
Data processing system failures cause many problems to the users of the system, especially when data is lost or corrupted. Therefore, when a data processing system fails, it is important to gather information that can aid in isolating and determining the problem associated with the failure.
The collection of first failure data capture (FFDC) information is an important part of common field service strategies utilizing embedded subsystems such as a service processor (SP) subsystem. The SP collects and stores as much FFDC data as possible into a limited non-volatile memory resource. The FFDC data is then later collected where it may be saved to a more permanent storage media and analyzed by, for example, field service personnel for analysis of the failures.
Current solutions do not allow for the dynamic reprioritization that is often necessary to capture all of the correct information in the limited storage space available for FFDC dumps. Moreover, current solutions do not provide reliability features for enabling data collection processes that are tolerant of failures that occur during the data collection phase.
Thus, it would be advantageous to provide a method and data processing system for enabling the dynamic reprioritization of data items captured by a first failure data capture system. Moreover, it would be advantageous to provide a data capture system that increases the reliability of a dump collection process.